You Can Dance - WikiHQ

You Can Dance is the first remix album by American singer and songwriter Madonna. It was released on November 16, 1987, in the UK and November 17, 1987, in the US by Sire Records. The album contains remixes of tracks from her first three studio albums—Madonna (1983), Like a Virgin (1984) and True Blue (1986)—and a new track, "Spotlight". In the 1980s, remixing was still a new concept. The mixes on You Can Dance exhibited a number of typical mixing techniques. Instrumental passages were lengthened to increase the time for dancing and vocal phrases were repeated and subjected to multiple echoes. The album cover denoted Madonna's continuous fascination with Hispanic culture.

After its release, You Can Dance received generally positive reviews from critics, some of whom noted how the already known songs appeared to them in a complete new structure, calling it an essential album to be played at parties. You Can Dance was a commercial success, earning a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipment of a million copies, and reaching the top twenty of the Billboard 200. It reached the top ten of the album charts of France, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom.

It went on to sell five million copies worldwide, making it the second best-selling remix album of all time, behind only Blood on the Dance Floor from Michael Jackson. "Spotlight" was the only commercial single released from the album, exclusively in Japan. However, the song was released promotionally in the United States, and due to radio play, the song peaked at number 32 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart. You Can Dance has been credited for setting the standard with remix albums afterward, both in terms of concept and commercial success on record charts.

Background

In October 1986, Sire Records announced that a 6-track EP called You Can Dance would be released a month or so before Christmas of that year, and would feature the new track "Spotlight" alongside remixes of five other previously released songs. However, the following month, the release was postponed, with Sire opting to continue promotion of Madonna's third studio album True Blue (1986). The album was finally released in November 1987 by Warner Bros. Records and Sire Records. By the mid-eighties, post-disco dance music was extremely popular and the concept of remix was widely regarded as a new direction of music.

Development

Six of Madonna's previously released tracks were chosen for the release: "Holiday", "Everybody" and "Physical Attraction" from Madonna (1983), "Into the Groove" and "Over and Over" from Like a Virgin (1984), and "Where's the Party" from True Blue (1986). Along with the previously released tracks, the never-before released song "Spotlight" was included as the album's opening track. Written by Madonna, Stephen Bray and Curtis Hudson, "Spotlight" was originally recorded during the True Blue recording sessions. You Can Dance was also the first North American-released Madonna album that contained "Into the Groove", which was only included on international reissues of Like a Virgin in 1985.

Sequencing for the album was provided by Madonna's old friend and producer John "Jellybean" Benitez. Benitez also provided remix production for the songs "Spotlight" and "Holiday". Pettibone said that he was "overjoyed" to have been asked to remix "Into the Groove", noting: "When I was mixing 'True Blue', I was wishing it could be 'Into the Groove'". She wore a female toreador outfit with a lacy bustier, embroidered bolero jacket and a cummerbund with a flouncy bustle. Shot by Herb Ritts, the cover showed Madonna again as a platinum blonde. Heiden explained in an interview with Aperture magazine in October 2006 that the cover was not meant to be a tie-in with the True Blue cover. "It was just Madonna's look at the time – Platinum Blonde. And of course the handwriting reappears on that album."

Composition

According to Rikky Rooksby, author of The Complete Guide to the Music of Madonna, "Improvements in studio technology meant that possibilities for shaping the sound after it has been recorded are almost limitless." Vocal phrases were repeated and subjected to multiple echoes, panned across the stereophonic sound outlets. At certain points, almost no music is heard except the drums and at others, the drums are removed with only the hi-hat left to keep time. It continues like this through the second verse, which is followed by an interlude featuring vocal echoes, a piano segment and violin phrases. Madonna follows the music played by the piano and utters the words "Pa-da-pa-da-pappa pappa pa pa" in the same melody.

The second track is "Holiday", which Benitez said that he always wanted to remix, commenting "There are new sounds on the 1987 remix [of 'Holiday'], but it had a groove that needed no improvement." The sound of the guitar is brought to the front in the remix, with a piano break and a middle section consisting of drum beats.

Promotion

Compared to her previous releases, Madonna did not heavily promote You Can Dance. This release remained promotional-only until it received a commercial digital release in 2022. "Spotlight" was released as the album's only commercial single on April 25, 1988, exclusively in Japan. "Spotlight" peaked at number 68 on the Oricon weekly singles chart, remaining on the chart for five weeks.

"Spotlight" was not released as a commercial single in the United States, therefore it was not eligible at the time to appear on Billboards Hot 100. However, it was released as a promotional single, paired with "Where's The Party". "Spotlight" managed to garner enough airplay to appear on the publication's Hot 100 Airplay chart in early 1988. It debuted on the chart at 37 on the issue dated January 16, 1988. After three weeks, "Spotlight" reached a peak of 32 and fell to 40 the next week before exiting the chart. It also appeared on the Hot Crossover 30 chart beginning on the issue dated December 12, 1987, peaking at 15 for two consecutive weeks beginning January 9, 1988 and spending eight weeks on the chart.

Critical reception

You Can Dance received generally positive reviews from music critics. In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau considered that "the effects, repeats, breaks, and segues added by a star crew of remixers [...] amount to new music—this time the songs don't surface, they reach out and grab you". He also argued that You Can Dance reminded the audience that before MTV, they "loved the way she sounded". John Milward from USA Today felt that "although the remixes sound a little exhaustive, its nevertheless party time with Madonna's album." Jan DeKnock from the Chicago Tribune predicted that the album would be "one of the big stars of the upcoming holiday party season".

Timothy Green from The Miami Herald said that "Madonna's new album isn't really new, but rather a collection of danceable hits, remixed by club deejays masterful at that peculiar art of taking the artists' work, track by track, and reconstructing it." He also said that "the remixes sound fresh" and that they gave "a new outlook on the already famous and popular songs." Daniel Brogan from the same newspaper also praised the album, saying that "Madonna has brought a new joy to the people buying gifts for Christmas, as You Can Dance is a fun-filled, fast-paced retrospective that will burn the dance floor till New Year." In a retrospective review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic said that You Can Dance "keeps the spotlight on her first record." He also noted at "some of this now sounds dated—these are quite clearly extended mixes from the mid 80s—but that's part of its charm, and it all holds together quite well. Not essential, but fun." The LP cuts debuted at number 41 on the Dance Music/Club Play chart, and moved up to number 17 the next week. The LP cuts ultimately topped the Dance chart, becoming Madonna's seventh number one entry. The album was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipment of one million copies across the United States. After five weeks, it reached a peak of number 11 on the chart. In Australia, You Can Dance debuted at number 15 on the Kent Music Report albums chart, and peaked at number 13. It was certified platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipment of 70,000 copies of the album.

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